Search Results for: ivonne spinoza
A sculpture of a silver human head made to look like a grenade.
Beyond the Films
November, 8, 2024

Make Art or Die? For Some Veterans Creating Art Can Heal from Trauma

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza [Image above courtesy the artist: "Grenade Head," by Peter J Buotte, digitally-milled aluminum, detonator fuze, 2005.] Most people may be familiar with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and other common types of psychotherapy, but art therapy remains somewhat…
A man with medium-dark skin tone and a large black mustache poses with a shovel in a sparse forest. He wears a thick sweatshirt, hat, and knee-high boots.
Beyond the Films
April, 1, 2024

Temporary Farm Workers by the Numbers: How Do They Make Ends Meet?

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza From working hard jobs for extremely low wages to being separated from their families for up to 10 months at a time, the sacrifices and challenges seem never-ending for temporary workers in the U.S.  In the documentary…
A man in a US military uniform with dark skin tone stands beside a woman with medium skin tone wearing a denim jacket and white hijab. Other soldiers stand in the background and foreground.
Beyond the Films
November, 6, 2023

The Complex Role and Diverse Array of Chaplains in the Military

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza When you hear the term chaplain, if you're not in the military, what usually comes to mind? It could be a pop culture reference, like Father Mulcahy in M*A*S*H*, or prison chaplains in a movie with a…
Short Film “Folk Frontera” Shows the Culture of Life on the Border
Behind the Films
September, 15, 2023

Short Film “Folk Frontera” Shows the Culture of Life on the Border

Independent Lens in Behind the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza Alejandra Vasquez and Sam Osborn’s Folk Frontera is a border-set tale, expertly portraying the beauty and heartbreak that comes with living on the U.S.-Mexico border. Connecting two strangers through their love of music, this short film highlights…
illustrated animated film still of young Matt from the film Brother
Behind the Films
August, 30, 2023

Feeding Our “Hungry Ghosts”: The Misunderstood Pain Behind Addiction

Independent Lens in Behind the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza Brother is an intimate portrayal of addiction that makes us question our preconceptions and helps shed light on what really goes on inside the mind of a person suffering through this process. I spoke with filmmaker Joanna…
An injection site in Vancouver with orange colored partitions separating different areas. A sign reads "Injection site open all night." A man with a ponytail and long beard stands in the middle of the site looking off camera to the right.
Behind the Films
February, 23, 2023

How Vancouver Finds Hope and Love Amid Fentanyl Crisis

Independent Lens in Behind the Films

  By Ivonne Spinoza One of the more horrible legacies we are left with from the war on drugs is the lack of compassion toward those who struggle with addiction. Instead of treating this crisis as a health issue, society…
A husband and wife look over a fence straddling a river in Brooks County, Texas.
Beyond the Films
February, 3, 2022

“Death Valley for Migrants”: The Invisible Cost of Border Crossing

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Ivonne Spinoza What is more important: laws or lives? This is the question at the center of the immigration debate and its ramifications.  Conversations around illegal border crossings often result in the dehumanization of migrants. These are people we’re…
Fenell Doremus with kid on laptop and husband and dog in background
Interviews
October, 29, 2020

Parenting and Making Docs During a Pandemic? It’s a Juggling Act

Independent Lens in Interviews

By Ivonne Spinoza "Producing films often translates to putting out fires before they start, so I suppose this gets you ready for parenting in a pandemic, generally speaking, but did I feel prepared for the reality of 2020? That’s a…